Connecting a trailer to a vehicle can be a tiresome and needlessly difficult process. In addition to connecting the trailer to the tow bar of the vehicle, the power cord must be connected, the parking brakes must be disconnected and the support wheel or the support column(s) must be raised, if the trailer has these features. Connecting smaller trailers to the vehicle can also be strenuous, since the user often has to lift the trailer on to the tow bar.
US 20070007749 describes a coupling having a ball neck body pivoted around an axis between the operating and the rest positions. Rotation blocking bodies are placed in connection with an actuation mechanism, in order to direct the reaction forces perpendicular to the pivot axis.
US 20050167945 describes a device which is designed as a ball member to be connected to a fastener located on the trailer. The vehicle has a tow bar mounted behind the rear bumper. The coupling comprises a container fitted to a component that uses a load bearing component and slides into a locked position by means of a spring supported locking element for attaching the device in a resting or working position.
EP 1535765 describes a trailer coupling for motor vehicles which has a coupling arm with drive means acting on a rotary axis element through a rotational bearing. By means of a movement device, the mounting piece is pressed into a recess that holds the coupling to the connector housing in order to lock it therein.
All these documents describe different solutions for a tow bar that can be hidden and retrieved when you need it. The problem with these solutions is that they have an esthetic purpose only. These solutions solve the following problem; how to hide a tow bar on a vehicle when it is not in use. None of these solutions simplify the attaching of a trailer to the tow bar of a vehicle, and none of these solutions give the user any indication whether the trailer is securely and properly attached to the vehicle. This means that the challenges with connecting a trailer to a vehicle are still the same.